Column: Pandemic flu event best battled by honest communication

There was a time in this country when a gasoline crisis of a different kind had great impact on a community. In the early 1900s, gas wasn't in short supply, and it was far from $4 a gallon, but no one could buy any. All of the gas stations were closed because the people running them were sick -- along with many others in the community.

There was a time when governing bodies in Kansas were passing ordinances outlawing handshaking.

There was a time when germs literally took over.

It was 1918 and a great pandemic was sweeping not only across the America, but also around the world. Before it was over, as many as 100 million people worldwide were killed.

Could that time be coming again?

For the past few months, I've joined other members of the Henry County medical community in mapping out plans to combat a pandemic.

This Henry County Hospital effort began at the request of the board. All of the current board members are businessmen, and they had all read an article about the impact of a pandemic and how, in these circumstances, you could expect one-third of your staff not to show up for work.

Needless to say, that caught everyone's attention.

Pandemics seem to happen in thirty year cycles. Pandemics occurred three times in the last century -- 1918-19; 1957-58; and 1968-69. Many scientists believe it's just a matter of time before it happens again.

A pandemic would have tremendous economic impact on a community, and not only on those who become ill. Everything would be affected - from the availability of food and supplies to the cancellation of school and church services to even a disruption of funerals.

An award-winning book, The Great Influenza - The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History, describes in vividly painful detail the struggles early 20th century Americans dealt with when the pandemic struck. John M. Barry's book has become a curriculum of sorts for my colleagues and me.

Our goal, if disaster strikes, is to achieve an "ordered chaos." Barry's book has helped us develop and plan for various scenarios.

We have a tremendous advantage over the people of that earlier time. It's called the Internet.

But we will face the same kinds of human emotions that have made pandemics of the past so painstakingly difficult. Family members will likely be separated and quarantined, perhaps for long periods of time. The quality of health care people have gotten used to will be compromised by the sheer volume of those who are ill. People are going to be upset, even combative, on behalf of their loved ones.

So we hope you'll join us in this pandemic preparedness journey. Just by reading this article you're helping us. If you haven't already, we encourage you to read Dr. Bowers' opening article in this series about hand washing -- a simple act that could be a powerful deterrent to the challenges ahead.

The articles also can be found at Henry County Hospital's Web site, www.hcmhcares.org, and archived under news.

The biggest lesson for us -- and the reason we're teaming with local media now -- is that information and trust is as important as any medicine we have.

Daniel House, M.D., is on the staff of Henry County Pathology Services. He is certified by the American Board of Pathology in anatomic pathology, clinical pathology and cytopathology. He is a graduate of Indiana University School of Medicine and did his residency at Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie. He is presently chief of medical staff at Henry County Hospital.